on the back of the wind
by Sparky Dorian
Summary: Major spoilers for HTTYD: The Hidden World. Watch that first, because it's a masterpiece. Hiccup's thoughts leading up to and following the end of the movie. Oneshot.


_The Hidden World was so beautiful that I had to write again. It's been awhile. I can't quite express what Toothless and Hiccup have taught me, but I hope you enjoy reading my tribute to them._

x

Pale light peeked over the horizon, kissing the bottoms of the clouds with pink and yellow. A flock of birds burst from the seashore and, with a gleeful cry, soared over the endless blue.

A morning breeze ruffled the grass, sending waves of bowing green rippling across the clearing. Everything was calm.

Cool. Quiet. Perfect.

An excited black tail hit a tree trunk, thudding in the silence.

Toothless's head snapped up, his pupils huge, his mouth wrinkled as if to say _sorry. _

Smiling, Hiccup held his finger to his lips.

"Careful, bud. We don't want to wake anyone up."

He pressed his palm to the dragon's shoulder, fingertips anchoring on the smooth, warm scales.

The two of them crept over the swirling grass until they reached the jutting edge of the cliff.

Slowing, they stood together at the end of the island.

For anyone else, the end of the world.

But not for a dragon and his boy.

Hiccup looked up into Toothless's wide green eyes.

"Are you ready?"

Toothless grinned his pink grin and crouched, his tail wiggling behind him.

Hiccup grinned back.

Jumping up, he grabbed the straps of the saddle and pulled himself on, kicking his feet into the stirrups. No longer connected to Toothless's tail. It wasn't him who did the steering; not anymore.

Toothless stood and closed his eyes, tipping his head up into the wind. Hiccup leaned back, letting his eyes drift shut and feeling the salty air wash over him.

They inhaled. Exhaled.

Then together, they leaned forward toward the horizon.

Hiccup rubbed one hand over his dragon's neck.

"Let's go."

In one smooth motion, Toothless leapt from the cliff, catching the air with his wings. The first second always took Hiccup's breath away, and it always returned in a gasping laugh. He turned his face to the rising sun, spread his arms, and—

He woke with a start.

His eyes snapped open to darkness. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. He shivered. Beside him, Astrid shifted toward him, her fingers curling into his shirt.

Hiccup bit his lip.

Inhaled. Exhaled.

He let his head sink into the pillow, listening to the sounds around him. Astrid's soft breathing, the rustling of Zephyr squirming in her sleep, and the muffled, gentle roll of Nuffink's snoring.

Emotions swelled up and filled his heart to bursting. He had to take a silent, shuddery break to even himself out, letting his cheek rest against Astrid's hair. Breathing in the earthy, familiar smell of her.

Some of the feelings he knew: happiness, love, contentment, relief, security, hope. And also sorrow, longing, uncertainty.

But some of the feelings he couldn't have named if he tried. They went misty the second he did, like a morning cloud disappearing between his trailing fingertips, or the dark shadow of a dragon slipping into the trees, gone so quickly he might have imagined it.

His beautiful, sturdy family, in their beautiful, sturdy home were more than he'd ever dreamed of. He lay silently for a moment and let the wonder of that soak into his skin. Gods, he was lucky.

Then he pressed a kiss to Astrid's forehead and slipped out of her arms. She was still a warrior in every way—fierce, brilliant, and brave. But she was also a young mother, and she'd begun to sleep like one. Hiccup smiled at the curve of her jaw, lit only by the moonlight that filtered through the gap in the curtain.

He took one quiet hop and reached for his prosthetic, hooking it on. Glancing back at his sleeping family, he edged out of their home and into the darkness.

Darkest before dawn. Didn't they say that?

Hiccup eased the door shut and turned, taking yet another deep breath. The whole village was sleeping, all dark windows and soundless clearings and smoke curling up from crooked chimneys.

_Careful, bud. We don't want to wake anyone up._

Rubbing sleep and a hot stinging away from his eyes, Hiccup moved away from the village. His feet took their familiar path away from New Berk, but his heart was somewhere far away. On another island, in another Berk, creeping with a black dragon through the anticipation of a new morning like they had a thousand times.

He stopped when he got to the cliff. It stuck out into the air, defiant, its jagged edge dropping straight into the frothy sea.

This was where they'd said goodbye.

Hiccup sat cross-legged in the cool grass, staring up at the twinkling stars.

He didn't move until the sun started to yawn his way over the sharp horizon, sending the stars fading into sleep once more.

Behind him, a twig snapped.

Spinning around, he was standing before his eyes knew what they were seeing, his good leg planted behind him and one hand reaching for a sword he hadn't strapped on. Old habits.

A messy blond head tilted and large eyes stared at him.

"Dad?"

Hiccup relaxed, crouching and holding out his arms. "Hey, Nuffink. What's wrong, you couldn't sleep?"

Nuffink dragged his blanket behind him and fell into Hiccup's embrace. His words came out muffled into Hiccup's shoulder. "Zephyr kicked me in the face."

Suppressing a laugh, Hiccup sat cross-legged again, holding Nuffink in his lap. "You do have your own bed, you know," he said.

"I know." Squirming, Nuffink turned his face up. It still bore a faint red mark along one cheek where the offending foot had met it. "But I like sleeping with her."

Hiccup kissed Nuffink's head. "Fair enough. Do you want to try and sleep some more?"

"Nah." Nuffink twisted in his grasp so he could see the ocean. "I wanted to come sit with you, Dad."

Smiling, Hiccup tucked the blanket over his son.

Nuffink's warm head fell against Hiccup's chest and the two of them watched the sunrise. Pink and purple spread over the clouds. Hiccup twisted his neck to watch the light kiss good morning to Stoick's Peak—the tallest mountain on the island.

"Did Mom kick you in the face too?" Nuffink asked. He held one of Hiccup's hands, running his tiny fingers over a scar that ran across the palm.

With a chuckle, Hiccup faced the horizon again. "No, she didn't. She would never do that accidentally, only on purpose."

They laughed together, then fell silent.

"I just had a dream," Hiccup said, quietly. "So I came out for some fresh air."

"Oh."

Nuffink didn't say anything for a long time, then he turned around in Hiccup's lap. His bony knee caught Hiccup in the stomach as he turned to stare up with his impossibly big green eyes.

"Will you tell me the story again?"

Hiccup didn't ask what story, and Nuffink didn't need to say.

He took a breath. "You sure?"

"Yeah." Nuffink nodded. "I want to hear it again."

Swallowing a lump in his throat, Hiccup smiled. "Alright, you got it."

"When I was a boy," Hiccup began, his arms tight around his son and his voice soft, "there were dragons."

x

When mid-morning came, Zephyr and Nuffink ran off to school. The village children spent a few hours together most days, learning to read, write, fight. The parents took turns teaching different skills on rotation. Hiccup and Astrid had spent many quiet nights curled up together, wondering about who their children would become.

Zephyr was headstrong and compassionate and fearless. Nuffink was shy and thoughtful and fiercely loving. Whatever they became, they'd be great.

Hiccup swung his axe, splitting a massive log. They planted a tree for every one they cut, working methodically across the island to keep nature in balance. Luckily, winter here wasn't quite the bitter cold it had been on their old island.

The metal bit into wood again and again until he'd finished a small pile. Heaping it up beside the house, he cleaned off his axe and slipped it into the sheath.

"Hiccup?"

Astrid's voice preceded her around the corner. Hiccup tipped the axe over his shoulder and shot her a grin.

"Gee, Astrid, you're just a second too late to see how manly I am." He swelled his chest up like he had when they were kids and he play-acted at being his father.

She laughed and punched him in the shoulder. "I'm sure you'll find a chance to remind me soon enough."

Then she looked at him, eyes searching his face.

He set the ax down. "What's on your mind?"

A smile flitted at one side of her mouth. "I was about to ask you the same question."

"It's like we were made for each other, or something."

She punched him again. This time it hurt a little, and he grimaced at her, rubbing the sore spot.

"I'm serious, Hiccup."

"Okay, okay." The two of them slipped inside, sitting on the edge of their bed. "What is it?"

"Nuffink said you told him the story again."

Hiccup's breath caught. "Yeah. Yes, I did. Is that... bad?"

Astrid scowled. "Of course not! I miss them too. I want our children to know about the dragons just as much as you do. It's just..."

"What?"

She reached over and clasped his hand. "Hiccup, I think it's time."

A sneaking suspicion slunk its way up his chest, but he ignored it and played dumb. "Time for what?"

"You know what."

Sunlight glinted off the snow-spots on their window. Hiccup buried his face in his hands, pressing his palms against his eyes until he saw stars.

"_You _know how much I want to," Hiccup said, strangled. "But-"

"But what?" Astrid elbowed him. "You've waited almost nine years. How much longer are you going to wait?"

"Maybe forever."

"Hiccup!"

He sat up. "What?"

"Why are you giving yourself such a hard time about this?"

"Because—because—" Hiccup bit the inside of his cheek and the coppery taste of blood filled his mouth. Then words poured out in a rush. "Because I miss him so much I'm not sure if I'll be able to manage to say goodbye a second time. Because I still wake up feeling his scales under my hands and hearing that annoying laugh he did whenever he spat something onto my lap. Because—and—I mean, what if us going there messes everything up? What if we throw everything out of balance again? Or what if he wants to come with us? He can't come back, you know that. What if he doesn't remember me, or what if—" The worst thought of all pierced his mind again. "What if he's not there at all? What if something happened to him? We have no idea what—"

"Hiccup."

She took his hand again, and he grounded himself to the work-roughened warmth of her palm.

He gave her a sheepish smile. "Yeah?"

"You could've just given Ruffnut a run for her money."

"Hoh, that's a low blow." Hiccup kissed her on the cheek. "I just worry. You know that."

"Oh, do I ever." Astrid sighed. "I worry too. But if we keep worrying forever, we're never going to have any answers." She caught his gaze. "And you're never going to have any peace."

Hiccup stared into the blue of her eyes, endless as the ocean and clear as the sky in summer.

Something settled into place in the pit of his stomach, half determination and half fear. He nodded.

"You're right."

"I know."

He kissed her, his hand catching the back of her head and his eyes drifting closed. She let out a different sort of sigh and squeezed his other hand.

"I love you," he murmured.

Astrid smiled. "I know that too."

Hiccup leaned back, looking around the house. "Without dragons, it'll take us days to get there. Maybe weeks. We'll have to start getting ready."

"I may have already done a few things..."

Hiccup snorted. "Of course you did. What would I do without you?"

"Oh, I shudder to think." Astrid tugged him to stand. "Let's get packing. We can talk to the kids when they get home."

Standing, Hiccup braced himself against another crash of worry.

"Do you think they'll—"

"They might even be more excited than you when we tell them," she said. "Now stop worrying. I see you worrying." She pressed her thumb between his eyes. "That line right there says worrying in a big way."

Hiccup caught her hand and kissed her again. "Alright, worrying over." He hugged her, burying his face in her shoulder.

"Everything will work out, Hiccup," Astrid said. "Trust me."

x

It was as if Stoick and all the chiefs of the past stood at their shoulders. The wind carried them along, ghosting across their necks and filling their sails the whole way. It didn't rain, the waves didn't crash, the sun shone, but never too blindingly.

It was like the universe was saying, "You made the right choice."

And they were getting close. He could feel it. The compass Valka had pressed into his hand as they boarded the boat pointed the way, but more than that, a tug in the space just behind his heart urged him in the right direction. Pulling him closer.

Astrid let out a breath beside him. They laid on the deck, watching the sky roll above them while the world slept beneath.

"We're close," she said.

"You feel it too, huh?" He scooted closer to her.

"Mmm."

They stared up at the stars. The shapes he'd learned as a boy stared back, pressing with a comfortable weight. The hunter, the great chief, the woman of the hills, the sailor, and, of course, the dragon.

They reminded him that his wasn't the only story in the world. That others had made it, and that he could too.

He _was _making it. His family was everything, _everything_.

It was just—he needed to know, too. Toothless was family, no less for the years and the distance, and he needed to know how his brother was living.

"Thank you," Hiccup murmured.

"For what?"

"Believing."

Astrid smiled sleepily and snuggled up to his side. "Mm. Always."

Hiccup drifted to sleep to the sound of the wind whispering overhead, pushing them steadily on toward the waterfall.

The end of the world. For anyone else, maybe.

But not for a dragon, and not for the man who missed him.

The sun had just cleared the horizon when Hiccup spotted them.

His stomach did a leap and his chest squeezed, the tug behind his heart growing so strong that he struggled to breathe.

"Hiccup?"

"There they are." The words came out choked, and he swallowed before trying again. "There they are!"

Toothless, black against the white foam of the waterfall. The light fury, and—his heart jumped again. Two little dragons, black and white and perfect.

"It's really them."

They sat on a large, flat rock, soaking in the sun. Maybe Toothless felt the tug, too, and it had brought him to the surface.

"Are you ready?" Astrid asked softly.

Hiccup nodded, steading himself.

He inhaled. Exhaled.

"I'm ready."

They collided with the rocks at the edge of the waterfall, the current holding them in place. Toothless went rigid, his eyes fixing on them. Growling, he swooped up and dove toward the ship.

Nuffink and Zephyr ran to Astrid, hiding behind her.

"Toothless! Hey, bud."

Fear and despair and traitorous hope swirled in Hiccup's stomach.

Toothless landed with a thud on the ship's prow. His eyes were narrowed, his pupils slits. He growled, prowling forward with his spines up and his teeth out.

He had another family to protect, now, too.

Hiccup stretched out a hand, his voice cracking. "It's me, Toothless. Remember me? Do you remember?"

Hand trembling, he searched for any signs in Toothless's face and found none. The wind had fallen silent, leaving no sound but the dull roar of the waterfall and the rough growl rumbling in his dragon's throat.

"Bud, it's me."

He closed his eyes, turned his head aside.

Waited.

Nothing.

Then, a little "Huh?" and a purr of recognition. Hiccup's eyes snapped open and the boat reeled as Toothless wriggled with excitement, tackling him.

Warm scales met warm hands as Hiccup threw his arms around Toothless's neck. Tears pricked behind his eyes and light exploded somewhere inside him. Like what he'd felt whenever his dad smiled at him, when he'd met his Mom again, when he'd married Astrid, when Zephyr was born, when he'd seen Nuffink for the first time.

Family.

"Don't worry, kids, he's not going to eat your father," he heard Astrid saying. "Look, see? They're friends!"

He could barely hear her. Toothless was hugging and licking and slobbering and Hiccup was hugging and crying and then yelping as hot drool touched his neck for the first time in nine years.

"I missed you too, bud. So much."

He squeezed once more, fiercely, and turned to his children.

"Come on. This is him, and I want you to meet him."

They edged forward nervously and Hiccup took their hands. "He won't hurt you. Just let him come to you."

They held out their palms, trusting.

Toothless cast Hiccup a curious glance, then smiled, pressing his forehead into their outstretched palms.

Nuffink peeked out from his fingers and giggled.

Zephyr rubbed Toothless's nose and beamed at Hiccup.

"Toothless, this is Nuffink and Zephyr. Kids, this is Toothless."

Suddenly a blue and yellow blur shot up from the giant hole in the earth. Astrid's breath caught behind him.

"Stormfly!"

Hiccup caught Astrid's eye and then locked gaze with Toothless. The three of them grinned.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Astrid scooped Zephyr and Nuffink up and jumped onto Stormfly, taking off with a whoop of joy.

Toothless bumped his head into Hiccup's arm and he climbed up onto the dragon's back, pressing both hands into the slick, black scales.

"Are you ready?" Hiccup whispered.

With a trill of happiness, Toothless took off.

Wind rushed around him and took his breath away. It returned in a burst of laughter as the sun streamed around them and the wind whistled in his ears. He spread his arms wide and closed his eyes, feeling the beat of his heart and hearing the steady breathing of his dragon.

Then he crumpled forward, wrapping his arms around Toothless from behind. "I love you, bud."

"Dad, look at me!" Zephyr cried.

"Look at me, too!" Nuffink was clinging to one of the babies while Zephyr dangled from Stormfly's claws, shrieking with laughter.

Stormfly tossed Zephyr and Hiccup caught her.

"Whoa." She touched Toothless with a gasp of awe.

Hiccup smiled.

"I know."

They flew for hours, gliding and twisting and diving and laughing.

It was the best day of their lives.

At last, the sun began to dip back into the sea and the shadows they cast on the blue surface grew long.

The dragons flew them back to the ship. Hiccup gave Toothless's tail a makeover, oiling and polishing and replacing the bolts. Toothless waved it at his mate, pleased, and she gave a deep dragon chuckle.

Astrid hugged Stormfly, her eyes closed. Hiccup turned to embrace Toothless, but the dragon growled, jerking his head up to his back.

Astrid touched Hiccup's shoulder.

"You should take one more ride," she said, soft. "Just the two of you."

Hiccup nodded, blinking hard, and laid his hand on top of hers. "We'll be back soon."

The light fury curled up with the babies on the rock, and Stormfly perched on the ship's prow to wait.

Hiccup climbed onto his dragon's back once more.

"Shall we?"

Toothless tensed, his scales rippling with lightning and his spikes glowing.

Then they shot into the sky.

Hiccup gasped, then laughed, clinging to the place where the dragon's wings met his back. They flew faster than the wind, dipping once toward the ocean. Toothless dragged the tip of one wing across the surface and Hiccup leaned sideways, letting his fingers touch the water.

They pulled up again, soaring toward the sky. Cold mist and cold wind blew past his face as he trailed his hands through the clouds.

Hiccup tried to capture the feeling of the wind on his skin, the warmth of Toothless beneath him, the total, rushing joy in his heart.

Toothless was happy.

Hiccup was happy.

Their families were happy.

What more could he ask for?

In the calm of dusk, Toothless lighted back on the deck of the ship.

Hiccup slid off his back, his feet thudding against the polished wood.

Tears pricked behind his eyes as he looked into the face of his first real friend. "Thank you, Toothless."

Toothless leaned back on his hind legs and reached for Hiccup, pulling him for a hug. Hiccup listened to the pattering beat of the dragon's heart and hugged back.

"I'm so happy we saw you again." Hiccup couldn't hold back now, and hot tears ran down his cheeks. "I'm so happy you're happy. I can't even—you don't even know."

Toothless rumbled and bent his head to cover Hiccup's.

They stayed that way for a long time. Then Hiccup stepped back, wiping his face with his sleeve, and smiled. "I love ya, you slobbery, sneaky winged beast."

Toothless grinned at him and licked up the side of his shirt.

"Toothless! You know how hard that is to wash out."

Laughing, Toothless tucked his wings in and sat.

They fell silent, just looking at each other.

"I'm sure gonna miss you," Hiccup whispered, his voice catching.

Then he felt Astrid's hand on his arm, solid and firm.

"We all will. But we'll be back."

Hiccup turned. "We will?"

Astrid nodded. "Isn't that right?"

Nuffink grabbed Hiccup's hand and Zephyr hugged Astrid's side.

"That's right!"

Hiccup caught Toothless's eyes again. "Is that... alright?"

Toothless inclined his head, and something released in Hiccup's stomach, that knot of worry and hope finally coming undone.

He let go of his family and stepped forward, holding out his hand. Toothless pressed his head against it. "Goodbye for now, then, bud."

The two of them stood together.

Inhaled. Exhaled.

"Are you ready?" Hiccup asked softly.

Toothless nosed his palm.

Then he took off again, swirling up into the night air. His wings billowed out, catching the air, then he dove, landing next to his family and ushering them into the gaping waterfall.

Into the end of the world.

For some, maybe.

But for a clan of dragons and the family who loved them, it was only the beginning.


End file.
